Russia expels Estonian diplomat in tit-for-tat move

Russia declared an Estonian diplomat persona non grata on the basis of the principle of reciprocity, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

The Ministry reports that Estonian Charge d'Affaires Yana Vanamelder was summoned to the Russian Federation on March 31 and protested against declaring a diplomatic official of the Russian Embassy in Tallinn persona non grata, Gazeta.ru reports.

The Foreign Ministry noted that the steps of Tallinn were taken "without any justification," and stressed that by the principle of reciprocity demanded that a diplomat of a similar level of the Estonian Embassy in Moscow leave Russia and within the same time frame.

"We are forced to implement other responses to the persistent provocative activities of the Estonian authorities against Russia. Responsibility for the complete collapse of bilateral relations is on the conscience of those who make such decisions in Tallinn," noted in the Russian diplomatic mission.

On March 24, Estonia declared another Russian diplomat persona non grata. A statement by the Estonian Foreign Ministry said that the Russian was allegedly committing acts "undermining security and constitutional order" of the Baltic republic.